


We are Broken, but We Remain

by angededesespoir



Category: DRAMAtical Murder (Visual Novel)
Genre: 1 Sentence Fiction, Abuse, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Angst, Anxiety, Blood, Death, Domestic Violence, Drugging, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Many English teachers are no doubt out to serve some vigilante justice, Minor Injuries, Murder, Needles, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Self-Harm, Self-Hatred, Serious Injuries, Smoking, Some Sex, Violence, after the grammatical murders I've just committed, anyway- get ready for a range of emotions, mainly negative ones
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-19
Updated: 2016-11-19
Packaged: 2018-08-31 23:04:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8597230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angededesespoir/pseuds/angededesespoir
Summary: The path to Healing is not an easy journey for those with so many scars.





	

**Author's Note:**

> _I’m using Theme Set D from[here](http://asylums.insanejournal.com/1sentenceupdate/1470.html#cutid1). And…..I haven’t been on IJ in 5,000 years. Also, writing these things are a lot harder than I remembered. Also, this is my first time ever actually completing a whole set, so yay for me._
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> _(Can also be read[here](http://angededesespoir.tumblr.com/post/153398504440/we-are-broken-but-we-remain).)_

1\. River:  They sit by river’s edge, far away look in Koujaku’s eyes, as Mizuki strokes his hand, squeezes, makes a remark about the handsome man reflected on water’s surface- but Koujaku cannot see what Mizuki sees, and settles on remaining silent.

2\. Mountain: Recovery is like a mountain- it looks insurmountable, and for what progress you make, you’re always bound to slip up at some point- but if you’re lucky, someone will catch you before you hit the jagged rocks, will help secure your lines, will remind you why it is you still try to climb.

3\. Valley: He trails a hand down to the valley of his hips, inching along as Koujaku shivers with anticipation below him.

4\. Heart: When Koujaku finally passes out, Mizuki presses his ear to warm flesh, let’s the calm, steady beat beneath bring him an ounce of peace as he traces marked skin and thanks every god he knows that Koujaku is still here.

5\. Soul: It was the first time Koujaku got drunk at his place that he made the error of sliding a hand through bangs, revealing the mark on his face- the same one, Mizuki realized, he had been born with on his hip.

6\. Escape: He’ll wake at night, tearing at skin, tears streaming, and all Mizuki can do is try to pry fingers away, remind him he is not _there_ (even though he cannot escape).

7\. Climb:  They’re scrambling off Aoba’s balcony  as quickly as possible, clothes half thrown on in the attempt to escape an angry Tae-san.

8\. Freedom: When Mizuki tells him he has found a way to remove the tattoos, there is silence- then there are arms wrapped tightly around him and a choked out stream of, “Thank You”s.

9\. Wind: Koujaku shivers as the breeze blows against exposed skin; Mizuki smirks, unwinds scarf, and wraps it around his neck- “I told you you should’ve dressed warmer.”

10\. Storm: Koujaku can tell by the way Mizuki is tossing back shots like there’s no tomorrow that today’s one of the bad days, yet he hesitates, settles for silence- what good could ever come from two storms converging?

11\. Rain:  He smiles as he listens to Koujaku grumble about the leak in his roof- how the rain had soiled his fine rugs, how no repairman can come ‘til tomorrow-  as he pours another drink, thankful that the god of rain drove him here.

12\. Thunder: They power off their anxious, restless allmates and hold eachother close, listening to the pounding of thunder and watching a threat they for once can stay a distance from.

13\.  Snow: They’re both getting older and Mizuki sometimes like to tease that his husband’s hair is beginning to look like dirty snow (Koujaku scowls and frets over it, until Mizuki kisses him in reassurance and moves to distract).

14\. Stone: Some days, Koujaku sits as still as stone, unresponsive as Mizuki’s arms wrap around him, and the man lightly kisses his cheek.

15\. Rose:  Mizuki has to try not to laugh when Koujaku arrives on his doorstep -rose in hand, eyes averted, face a deeper hue than both the flower and their outfits-, settles instead for a peck on the lips and a whispered, “Happy Valentine’s- your present is inside,” as he tugs at the man’s sleeve, urges him inside.

16\. Unconditional: Mizuki likes to think Koujaku’s love is unconditional; the chance that it’s not keeps him from revealing his secrets.

17\. Limitation: Once, Mizuki tries to bind Koujaku, and he is halfway done when he notices the way the man’s limbs have begun to tremble, how the breathing is barely-managed half-gasps, and there are tears in his eyes; his hands quickly work to free him, asking what he needs, how he can help- Koujaku chokes back a sob and cannot answer.

18\. Ghost:  The same man haunts both their pasts- a mix of similar and different- the tattoos, the lack of control, the manipulation they can never move past.

19\. Haunted:  The hangout is empty, faded paint like the scars he tries to hide; he walks along empty corridors, Koujaku silent beside him, both acknowledging the echos of the past. 

20\. Believe:  They try to believe they can heal someday, but most days the goal is just to get by.

21\. Skeptical: Koujaku clutches the gift in his lap, not liking how insistent Mizuki is that he open it or the way Aoba looks like he’s barely containing laughter.

22\. Fright: It’s been a long day and he arrives home to the unfamiliar sight of darkness - _he had left the light on, right?_ -, suddenly feeling on edge as he moves to flick on light; when Mizuki jumps out to surprise him, his fist nearly collides with the man’s jaw.

23\. Power: The first scuffle their rib teams have results in Mizuki pinned against a graffitied wall, tension and power thrumming through the muscles of the man in the red kimono as he holds him in place; Mizuki half wishes he won’t let go.

24\. Magic: If he could create a spell to end Koujaku’s suffering, he would; instead, he settles for pouring him another glass.

25\. Kiss: The first time they kiss is a drunk fumbling, an urge to seek comfort and share pain.

26\. Embrace: He feels empty when he hears the news of Aoba’s engagement, so he goes to the only man he can go to, tries to ignore his concerned face as he pulls him close, buries head in his shoulder and for a few moments, allows himself to feel warmth again.

27\. Sensual: The candle wax drips down onto Koujaku’s chest and Mizuki swears to himself that he’d trade all his remaining days just to see the pleasured look on the man’s face a little while longer.

28\. Seduction: If the nosebleed is anything to go by, Aoba’s suggestion was very effective.

29\. Broken: Mizuki arrives at Koujaku’s home to find him curled on the bathroom floor, hands shredded and glass stuck in flesh that has known too many scars and will soon know more.

30\. Mend: They are still tending to unseen wounds, harvesting untold secrets, as they smile before their teams, as Mizuki tends to Koujaku’s cracked ribs, as they move together in the night in an another act of forgetting and pretending everything is alright.

31\. Enemy: He freezes in terror, cannot give in to instinct to draw sword on the man who is his friend- the man who is possessed by the same demon, the man who now smirks, the man who now jabs in the needle.....the man who now mimics monster of the past without knowing.

32\. Ally:  “You still have me,” Mizuki whispers, squeezing Koujaku’s hand, “I’m not going anywhere, and I’ll wait for as long as you need,”  ( _’even if that’s forever’_ ).

33\. Saint:  He tries to remind Mizuki that he is no saint, tries to hold him at a distance for ‘his (Mizuki’s) own good,’; Mizuki ignores him, continues to worship every inch of his body as he reminds him of all the good he’s done and continues to do.

34\. Sinner:  Mizuki does not say anything when Koujaku emerges, hands scrubbed raw and bleeding; instead he grabs the bandages and disinfectant, tenderly takes the hands into his own, and sets to work.

35\. Rumour: He hears in passing a rumour of a new rib team led by a man who’s name he remembers passing through Aoba’s lips years ago, and just like then the yearning to meet him surfaces.

36\. Blood: Koujaku is shaking, his eyes wide in horror as Mizuki stares up at him in shock and confusion, blood dripping down his face, just missing the drawing he had dropped on the floor.

37\. Grieve:  They did not allow themselves to grieve their losses, but simply pushed forward, always running, always trying to escape the past, lest it catch back up and overtake their future.

38\. War:  Sometimes he’ll slip out of their influence, flashes of Koujaku and Aoba in his mind- there for a second, a reminder, before the prick of the needle overtakes him again.

39\. Battle: Mizuki tends to his wounds, chiding him-  _‘why wear around a huge ass sword if you’re not going to use it?’_ \- Koujaku never responds.

40\. Conquer:  With each secret revealed, they gain more ground, yet the path to healing is a long one, with many twists and turns and landslides.  

41\. Dusk: Mizuki is staring out at darkening sky, remembering the way his vision was overtaken by the needle of a man who promised so much and robbed him of even more, so that each night he is afraid he will close his eyes and all he will find is the orchestrated darkness that was once his living nightmare.

42\. Dawn:  He wakes up sometimes and in the blurry haze he catches sight of him, exhaling smoke, deep in thought or memory as he stares out at the sky, growing lighter with coming day- the cigarette is extinguished; Mizuki closes his eyes.

43\. Surface:  Sometimes the demon will surface, will rage and try to destroy all he’s tried to build, and when he comes to he is shaking limbs and horror-filled eyes and regret, the guilt tightening its’ grip as Mizuki embraces him, his blood drying on Koujaku’s skin.

44.: Bury:  He doesn’t talk about it, tries to forget- the way he imagined the black-haired man as Ryuuhou touched him; the way he now sometimes sees the  skulls hovering over him as Koujaku takes him. 

45\. Promise:  “Promise you’ll kill me if I ever lose control again,” he whispers, voice cracking, as Mizuki looks down at him sadly, willing his hand to be steady as he reaches for Koujaku- “I promise,” - _he lies_.

46\. Hero: They are not heros, but they are doing everything they can to keep eachother from becoming villains.

47\. Web:  They are both tangled in their own web of lies, half-truths, and words never spoken, dancing the tango of evasion as they smile, talk, pour another glass. 

48\. Tangle:  They’re a mess of moans and sweat and sheets catching on limbs as Koujaku frantically searches for Mizuki’s hand, squeezes it, and allows himself to let go.

49\. Time:  Koujaku sits in the airport terminal, hands fidgeting, body craving a hit of nicotine, when Mizuki walks up, hands him a drink, whispers in his ear as he sits, “There’s no need to worry; Aoba will be excited when he hears the news.”

50\. Sword:  He feels it- the shattering of illusion, the agony as Koujaku’s sword pierces his throat, the thankfulness mixed with regret- for what he has done and cannot do- as the beast’s roar fills him with dread before death, in all its’ rage, devours him whole.


End file.
